- Sleeper trains
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- United Kingdom
Night Riviera sleeper trainLondon to Cornwall, waking by the sea
Britain’s other sleeper.
Leave Paddington at a quarter to midnight, sleep through Wessex and Devon, and wake for the last two hours down the Cornish main line: china-clay country, Truro, the Hayle estuary and Mount’s Bay, into Penzance before eight.
Every stop, both ways
Sunday to Friday nights.
Times from the operator’s published timetable; track works can change them, and booked passengers are told of changes.
London Paddington → Penzance
| Arr. | Dep. | Station |
|---|---|---|
| — | 23:45 | London Paddington |
| — | 00:49 | Reading (pick up only)next day |
| — | 02:37 | Taunton |
| 03:07 | 04:10 | Exeter St Davids |
| — | 04:32 | Newton Abbot |
| 05:10 | — | Plymouth (set down) |
| 06:05 | — | Liskeard (set down) |
| 06:19 | — | Bodmin Parkway (set down) |
| 06:26 | — | Lostwithiel (set down) |
| 06:34 | — | Par (set down) |
| 06:43 | — | St Austell (set down) |
| 07:01 | — | Truro (set down) |
| 07:17 | — | Redruth (set down) |
| 07:24 | — | Camborne (set down) |
| 07:34 | — | Hayle (set down) |
| 07:39 | — | St Erth (set down) |
| 07:50 | — | Penzance |
Penzance → London Paddington
| Arr. | Dep. | Station |
|---|---|---|
| — | 21:45 | Penzance |
| — | 21:55 | St Erth (pick up) |
| — | 22:08 | Camborne (pick up) |
| — | 22:16 | Redruth (pick up) |
| — | 22:29 | Truro (pick up) |
| — | 22:47 | St Austell (pick up) |
| — | 22:56 | Par (pick up) |
| — | 23:08 | Bodmin Parkway (pick up) |
| — | 23:24 | Liskeard (pick up) |
| — | 23:54 | Plymouth (pick up) |
| — | 00:22 | Totnesnext day |
| — | 00:36 | Newton Abbot |
| 01:00 | 01:07 | Exeter St Davids |
| — | 01:40 | Taunton |
| 03:55 | — | Reading (set down) |
| 05:04 | — | London Paddington |
Source: GWR, Night Riviera Sleeper (timetable, cabins, lounges) ↗
Choose your berth
From a reclining seat to a suite with its own shower.
Pick a class to see what you get and what it costs.
Single cabin
A private cabin with a bed and duvet, washbasin and wardrobe.
Lounges and showers at Paddington, Truro and Penzance, and breakfast to your cabin.
Supplement from £49 per cabin
GWR sells cabins as a supplement on top of your rail ticket.
The supplement depends on season, how far ahead you book and demand.
Railcards apply to the ticket. GWR, Night Riviera Sleeper (timetable, cabins, lounges) ↗
Pick the right month
Daylight decides what you see from the window.
Hover a month for the verdict.
Runs year-round, Sunday to Friday nights; no Saturday departures.
From May to August the sun is up for the Cornish section on arrival; in winter the last hour is in twilight.
Summer cabins sell out first.
What you’ll see
The Tamar crossing
Over Brunel’s Royal Albert Bridge at first light and into Cornwall.
The Cornish main line
Viaducts, china-clay country around St Austell, then Truro’s cathedral spires.
Mount’s Bay
The final minutes run along the shore with St Michael’s Mount across the bay.
Stay aboard in London
Eastbound, cabin guests can stay on board at Paddington until 06:45.
Night Riviera Sleeper, answered
The Night Riviera leaves London Paddington at 23:45 Monday to Friday and 23:50 on Sunday.
You can board from 22:30, and cabin guests can wait in the First Class lounge on platform 1. GWR ↗
At 07:50 Monday to Friday and 07:54 after a Sunday departure, about eight hours from London.
Truro is at 07:01 and St Erth, for St Ives, at 07:39. Timetable ↗
You buy a rail ticket and add a cabin supplement.
GWR quotes supplements from £49 for a single cabin and £59 for a twin, per cabin, rising with demand.
A seat needs only the ticket. GWR ↗
Six nights a week, Sunday to Friday.
There is no Saturday-night train in either direction.
Yes.
Westbound, every stop from Plymouth to St Erth is set-down only, so you can leave the train there.
Eastbound they are pick-up only.
Reading is pick-up only westbound and set-down only eastbound.
Paddington at about 05:04, but cabin guests can stay on board until 06:45.
It leaves Penzance at 21:45 Monday to Friday and 21:15 on Sunday. GWR ↗
Families often book two interconnecting twin cabins.
CN Traveller’s writer took a three-year-old and an 18-month-old and found the late departure easier than expected: bath, pyjamas, then a pram nap on the way to Paddington. CN Traveller ↗
The Caledonian Sleeper is the bigger operation, with five routes into Scotland, en suite rooms and double beds.
The Night Riviera is one route, shorter and simpler, with single and twin cabins sharing toilets. Caledonian Sleeper →
Every stop, and why you might get off
- London PaddingtonThe Night Riviera's London terminus: Brunel's station, Paddington Bear, and canals and Hyde Park a few minutes away.
- ReadingMainly a busy interchange, but the abbey ruins and Forbury Gardens are only minutes from the platforms.
- TauntonSomerset's county town; a good jumping-off point for the West Somerset Railway, the Quantocks and Exmoor.
- Exeter St DavidsA cathedral city and Devon's rail hub, with branch lines fanning out to the coast and moors.
- Newton AbbotA market town best used as the junction for Torbay; there is a small museum on Great Western Railway history in town.
- Plymouth'Britain's Ocean City': the Hoe, the Barbican and the Mayflower Steps are a short walk or bus ride from the station.
- LiskeardAn old market town, but mainly the place to change for the scenic Looe Valley Line down to the coast.
- Bodmin ParkwayA rural station 3 miles from Bodmin, with a footpath to the National Trust's Lanhydrock and a heritage steam line.
- LostwithielA small, historic tin-trade town on the River Fowey, known for its medieval bridge, antique shops and Restormel Castle.
- ParA small harbour town and the junction for Newquay, with a beach nearby and buses to Fowey.
- St AustellA china clay town with the bus station next door, making it the rail gateway to the Eden Project and Heligan.
- TruroCornwall's compact cathedral city and busiest station, and the place to change for the Maritime Line to Falmouth.
- RedruthPart of the 'Capital of Cornish Mining', inside the World Heritage Site; the station is the way in for East Pool Mine.
- CamborneA mining town and the birthplace of Richard Trevithick; worth a stop for mining heritage enthusiasts.
- HayleThree miles of golden sand, an RSPB estuary and World Heritage harbour. Note that the Night Riviera only calls here westbound.
- St ErthThe junction for St Ives: change here for one of Britain's most scenic short branch lines.
- PenzanceEnd of the line, overlooking Mount's Bay: a base for St Michael's Mount, the Scilly ferry and the far west of Cornwall.
- GWR, Night Riviera Sleeper (timetable, cabins, lounges) ↗
- National Rail, Sleeper Advance Twin (what is in the cabin) ↗
- CN Traveller, “We took the Night Riviera sleeper train to Cornwall” (May 2026) ↗
- Wikipedia, Night Riviera ↗
Times are from the operator’s published timetable and can change.
The animation runs to the scheduled pace between stops; intermediate points are drawn to follow the line, not to show timings.
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